Cheesy Bread

Cheesy Bread Is Absurdly Good, No Matter What You Call It

…In Bolivia, these rolls are called cuñapes; in Ecuador, they are known as pan de yuca; in Brazil, it’s pão de queijo; and in Paraguay and Argentina, they go by chipa. You also can’t forget the Colombian version, pan de bono, which incorporates masarepa into the dough. Aside from minor variations in technique and cheese type, they all rely on both cheese and tapioca starch for a bold flavor and incredibly chewy texture that’s instantly addictive. To avoid showing favoritism to one nation over another, I’m just going to call it cheesy bread. I scarf them down by the dozen, plucked right off the hot sheet tray, but they are traditionally served with coffee as an afternoon snack…

Tapioca Starch

The key ingredient in cheesy bread is tapioca starch. It’s a finely milled starch, derived from the cassava root, with a squeaky texture similar to corn or potato starch. Cassava root, also known as manioc or yuca, originated in northern Brazil, before it spread across all of South America. This explains the prevalence of this many-named cheesy bread throughout the region.